The Jazz led 46-41 at halftime, and the lead was largely based on second-chance points. Utah outscored San Antonio 12-0 in that category in the first-half, and center Enes Kanter contributed to that margin, with two put-backs in the second quarter.

Corbin said Kanter’s play is a sign of his growth as a player.

“Enes is growing,” Corbin said. “He’s learning what it takes to be a starter in this league, how he has to prepare himself coming out the third quarter to be ready. I think he’s getting better at that and not relaxing.”

Another positive note came on the glass as the Jazz outrebounded San Antonio 50-43.

Duncan said Utah’s front line presents problems for rebounders.

“With their obvious size and athleticism, they are tough and one of the best in the league at hitting the offensive glass,” he said.

Enes Kanter is terrorizing all opposing big men not named Brook Lopez. His jumper and post-game continue to merit the sort of over-the-top hyperbole I heaped on him, although he’s seeing more and more double-teams in the post now that teams are recognizing how inept the Jazz are in nearly every other area of their offense. Despite this, he’s shooting over 53%, tops on the Jazz by a considerable margin. He’s also been a beast on the offensive glass, collecting 3.9 offensive rebounds per game, good for sixth in the NBA. Examining this more deeply, Kanter is third in the league in contested rebound percentage among qualified players, at 63.2%, and first overall among guys playing starter minutes (25+ minutes per game) for this same category, per SportVu data on NBA.com. He’s one of only six starters league-wide who snags over 50% of his contested rebounds, a sign that his strength and his compete level are elite. Look at him out-muscling the aforementioned Lopez for a contested board (excuse the random sound blip):

If he does this for a full season, I’ll be comparing young Jazz players to all-time legends a lot more frequently.

Hayward has been mostly positive in his expanded role this year. His scoring efficiency has largely remained intact despite his increasing usage, a perfectly acceptable result for a former third option who is now the focal point of an offense. The real success has been in the other areas of his game, where so far he appears to have made large improvements in both his rebounding (5.9 per 36 minutes compared to 3.8 last season) and assists (4.9 per 36 minutes, 3.0 last year) per basketball-reference.com. His three-point shooting has momentarily declined and his turnovers are up, but these are likely the results of far less open looks courtesy of Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap, and should improve as he becomes even more comfortable in his new role. Time will tell, but the baby-faced Hayward may be playing his way into the max deal the Jazz were reluctant to give him this offseason.

He didn't want max.

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Utah’s two most used lineups this year, by far, are the four-man combo of Hayward, Kanter, Derrick Favors, and Richard Jefferson, along with either John Lucas or the recently-waived Jamaal Tinsley. These two lineups have played nearly 30% of the available minutes for the Jazz, and both have been absolutely destroyed by opponents. The lineup including Lucas is being outscored by 13.1 points per 48 minutes, per NBA.com, and the Tinsley version (which we thankfully won’t see anymore) had a disgusting -32.5 rating per 48 minutes. There may not be many better options, but consider that this exact same foursome combined with Alec Burks instead of Lucas or Tinsley is actually a small positive, outscoring opponents by 8.3 points-per-48.

None of which should be surpising.

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By this point, it doesn’t take a microscope to see Utah’s issues on offense. The spacing is awful, there’s hardly an average jump-shooter by position on the entire roster, and no one outside of Hayward and (sometimes) Kanter has even the slightest ability to create their own shot. Their performance against the Pelicans on Wednesday was enough to elevate them away from “worst shooting team ever,” at least temporarily, but that’s about as rosy as things have gotten so far this season. Per MySynergySports.com, the Jazz are in the bottom five league-wide in points-per-possession for three of the most important play types run: pick-and-roll (26th), spot-up shooting (29th), and transition play (30th). Even the dreariest of situations usually have the occasional bright spots, though, right? The Jazz are no exception, as Synergy also shows us that Utah has had some success in other areas of their offense. They’ve been roughly league average in the post, certainly nothing to scoff at considering they lost one of the league’s premier post players over the offseason in Al Jefferson.

Premier that brought the whole offense to a halt.

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Even better than average, though, have been simple screen-and-cut actions run for various Jazz wings. I touched on Burks’ effectiveness in these sort of sets last week, and he’s not alone in his effectiveness in this area. Check out a couple down screens for Hayward that led to good looks against a tough Chicago defense:

Jefferson and Lucas have also been above average on these sorts of actions, and the team has also had some success with simple hand-off plays that allow the receiver to obtain the ball with motion toward the hoop. And while trying to run a full offense based only on these sets would of course be foolish and predictable, a team like Utah could benefit from integrating them more heavily into their offense. For a group that’s struggled so mightily against improving NBA pick-and-roll defense, the sort of easy looks and simple decisions created by these sets would be a welcome addition. Baby steps, to be sure, but there’s really nowhere to go but up after the way things have started.

Favors continues his offensive development. He hit some outside shots. He went quickly and explosively to the rim on numerous plays. He has made a noticeable stride since two weeks ago with the time on the floor. He is also playing without foul trouble much more than he did beforehand. He finished 8 of 12 and is now nearing 50% for the season.

Marvin Williams looked the best he has all year on the floor tonight. In Toronto he played the back end of a back to back and said he felt really tight and pretty miserable. Tonight on the back end of a back to back he moved well, was active and strung together a nice night

Sadly they need him. I certainly wouldn't expect any kind of consistent play from him though.

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Point guard play tonight was not good. A night after being very control and strong as the point guard Burks regressed and it showed when the offense went from the 9:26 mark of the 1st quarter to the 3:23 mark without a field goal. In that span the Jazz went 0 for 8 with 4 turnovers. The point guard dance continues as Burks was benched for the second half. We miss you Trey and we don’t even know you.

The third quarter was one of the better offensive quarters of the year. The Jazz hit on 11 of 17 and 5 of 6 from three. Impressive that Richard Jefferson and Gordon Hayward who were both goose eggs in the first half were able to come back out and get it going in the third. Both had 10 points in the 3rd quarter.

Talked with a scout before the game who thought that Burks better learn how to be a point guard because he is not an nba shooting guard. Was a perspective that made me pause and think for a moment? He might have a point. Give me some time to digest this and think about if this is true.

The Warriors bench is limited. They play O’Neal, who got hurt and Green but they are limited and otherwise they are playing just 6 guys. It might be enough. Those six guys are versatile enough to do damage

Hayward started 0 for 5 so he was 5 of his last 28 at one point before a strong second half.

I see Burks as a good 6th man type at the very least. He's definitely got some wing skills and some pg skills.

X-rays revealed the Jazz forward broke it after taking an elbow to the face in the first half of the game.

But it wasn’t enough to keep him off the floor Saturday night against the Warriors.

"He’s a tough guy and a competitor and he wants to be out there to help his team," Jazz coach Ty Corbin said before the game. "We want to make sure we do the right thing by him and not put him anymore in harm’s way than he has to be."

Williams wore a mask for part of the second half Friday, but eventually took it off and played without it because it was obscuring his vision. The mask was back Saturday. Corbin said the earliest Williams could be fitted for a new mask — if that’s the path he and the team decide to take — would be Monday.

Derrick Favors also scored 10 points in the half. He led the Jazz in scoring for a second night in a row, finishing with 17.

Going to be in trouble with him as the go to guy.

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In the meantime, the Warriors added to their season highlight reel.

Before the game, Jazz coach Ty Corbin said he hoped Burks, starting a second straight game at point guard, would be able to use his size to limit Warriors guard Stephen Curry’s shooting.

"If you give him an inch, it’s in the air and it’s in the hole," Corbin said.

Curry scored 15 points, but it was his passing that dazzled in the first half, as he went on to finish with 11 assists.

In the first quarter, the point guard went behind the back to Klay Thompson for a reverse layup. Later, Curry penetrated and kicked out to Thompson for one of his three first-half 3-pointers. Thompson finished with a game-high 25 points.

"It’s a double-edged sword with him," Corbin said of Curry afterward.

Even when the Jazz turned up the energy, it seemed to backfire.

In the second quarter, Mike Harris stole the ball, ran the length of the court but missed the layup. Kanter missed the putback attempt and Williams rebounded only to see his shot blocked by Jermaine O’Neal, leading to a break-away dunk for the Warriors.

But in the third quarter, the Jazz came to life, using the 3-ball to cut into the deficit.

Richard Jefferson, John Lucas and Hayward all hit from beyond the arc, trimming down a lead that once was as large as 19.

When Hayward hit his second triple in the quarter, the Warriors were up just 7.

"We’ve got to put 48 minutes together, especially on the road," said Corbin. "Man, we have to do it. We have to find a way to get it done."

Going to be tough especially on the road.

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But Golden State was able to answer, pushing the margin to double-digits heading into the fourth quarter.

Former Ute Andrew Bogut recorded his first double-double of the season, scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for the Warriors.

In the end, it was another big road loss for a Jazz team that has seen its nightly struggles only exacerbated away from EnergySolutions Arena.

Before the game, Jackson said he knew the Jazz would play hard, but the coach also called Utah a team "obviously that’s trying to find themselves right now."

Thanks to that scheduling quirk, the Jazz will know where they are Monday — once again matched up with Golden State.

The Jazz also had the Warriors’ pick in 2012, but it was a conditional pick to be used only if the Warriors finished out of the top seven. The Warriors conveniently lost 22 of their final 27 games and tied for the No. 7 spot. Then they won a coin flip with Toronto and took Harrison Barnes with the No. 7 pick.

The Jazz had to use the pick for the 2013 draft, which came in at No. 21, which they used with their own pick at 14 to trade up to get Trey Burke in the draft.

Alec Burks got the start but struggled with both his shooting and facilitating the offense. He played 20 of the possible 24 first-half minutes but then did not see the court until five minutes remained in the game. John Lucas III got the nod in the second half.

John Lucas III isn’t about to let getting benched last week in favor of the freshly signed Diante Garrett bother him. "One thing about me: I’m a team player. That game I was pressing," said Lucas, who was 0 for 7 on the night. "I wasn’t playing good, so why would I stay on the court?" Salt Lake Tribune

In the second half, coach Tyrone Corbin started John Lucas III and the Jazz played much better, staying within 10 points until midway through the fourth quarter. Lucas made all three of his shots and handed out four assists in one of his better games of the season.

The Golden State back-to-back miniseries is one of three on the Jazz schedule this year. Later this month, Utah plays Phoenix on back-to-back nights and in January, the Jazz play Minnesota in consecutive games three days apart. ... After Monday’s game, the Jazz hit the road again for games at New Orleans Wednesday, Dallas Friday and Oklahoma City Sunday before returning home to face Chicago Monday. ...

1-15 ?

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In his last three games, Jefferson is averaging 16.0 points on 16-of-30 shooting. ... Derrick Favors led the Jazz with 17 points and seven rebounds Saturday. ... Jermaine O’Neal, the 17-year NBA veteran who joined the Warriors this season, went down with a right knee sprain in the second half and was scheduled to undergo additional testing Sunday.